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An all-round impressive smartphone, the Sony Xperia Go exceeds expectations on multiple fronts but is let down by a number of avoidable flaws that tarnish the handset's user friendliness and general performance.

Although not the most specs-impressive handset on the market, the Sony Xperia Go pushes the boundaries of its sub-market with largely pleasing results.

We liked

There is no getting away from the fact that for an IP67 certified handset, the Sony Xperia Go is stunning. Take away these rugged handset capabilities and you are left with an aesthetically pleasing handset. With them you have what is easily a leading device in its life-beating sub-sector.

With an intuitive operating system and user interface combo, the Sony Xperia Go is easy to use and will appeal to first time smartphone users and hardened handset fans alike.

With a broad selection of pre-installed content, Sony's tough pocket blower is capable of impressive camera results and is, in general, a joy to use.

We disliked

While we still can't get our heads around making a rugged handset white, there are bigger issues with the Sony Xperia Go than its colour scheme.

Despite the handset's 1GHz dual-core processor running the show nicely, there is an irritating amount of lag that accompanies screen movements and application launches. Add to this poor speaker placement and a rather glare-friendly screen, and media playback is somewhat lacking.

Final verdict

Stunning to look at and comfortable in the hand, from the box the Sony Xperia Go is an all-round hit. Sadly with continued use the Sony Xperia Go fails to live up to these initial high expectations, with a number of irritating niggles emerging to add a slight air of infuriation to what is a largely well rounded device.

Although the Sony Xperia Go is not going to set the smartphone world alight, for anyone looking for a handset that is both beautiful on the eye and able to stand up to whatever you can throw at it, there is no better option than the Sony Xperia Go. And at just £229 (around $350) SIM-free, it's also a bit of a bargain.